Hall of Fame

William C. Rudin

CEO and co-chairman,
Rudin Management Co.

Bill Rudin heads the real estate firm founded by his grandfather in 1925, which was run for many years by his famous father and uncle. The company operates 18 apartment buildings and 17 commercial office buildings containing 11 million square feet of space and manages two condominiums.

Why did you join the family business?

I realized I had a unique opportunity to do things given the incredible platform that had been created by my grandfather, uncle and father. Plus, I was very lucky to be able to work with them and learn from them.

What was the most important thing you learned from them?

I learned how to do it watching them—how they dealt with our employees and tenants and bankers and others in the city. They taught me, you can’t just focus on your building. It’s not an island. It’s connected to the environment we are in.

What were the early days like?

One of the first projects I got involved with was the creation of 560 Lexington Ave., which was the first major office building built after the city’s near bankruptcy of the 1970s. I was able to see the whole process from start to finish.

What was your most important early success?

In the mid-1990s, there were 30 million square feet of vacant space downtown. We lobbied for the city to pass the downtown plan to revitalize the neighborhood. At Rudin, we made 55 Broad St. the godfather of interconnected office space. We completely renovated this building that had been empty for five years after Drexel Burnham Lambert’s bankruptcy and for the first time brought broadband into a building. We rented 55 Broad St. in 18 months, and vacant office space downtown was reduced to less than 8 million square feet.

How did you change the company?

Bringing technology into the business was one major change. The other was changing the way we designed our buildings. We used to have Emery Roth design all our buildings. They went out of business in the 1970s, and we brought in different firms and held competitions and added more open space, bringing in gyms and other amenities.

What is the hallmark of your company?

That our word is our bond. We have had tenants in our buildings for 50 or 60 years. And when we make mistakes, we make it right.

What is your biggest accomplishment?

Keeping the family together and handing the business to the next generation. My cousin Eric is president and co-chair, and my sister Beth is executive vice president. My two children, Samantha and Michael, last year were promoted to senior vice president, so they can take over the business and their children can as well. Samantha has a desk in her office for her 7-year-old daughter.

Your family always has been in the thick of the city’s civic life. How has it changed?

Back in the mid-1970s, New York was fighting for its life, and my father was very involved in this existential threat to the city. As my Dad always said, “We can’t move our buildings.’’ They would be so thrilled to see what has happened with the city. Now we face different dynamics with the changed political landscape, and we are going to have to adjust and understand that the issues of affordability, education and health care are legitimate.

The real estate industry has never been held in lower esteem in New York. What can change that?

It is, and it is so frustrating because I know a lot of really committed people who care about this city. Obviously they have an economic stake in New York, but today you can invest anywhere in the world. Look at any board in the city and real estate is represented. So we have to re-earn the trust of our community. We will. We are not going to be scared out of town.

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